The June 4 Democratic primary election results included an upset victory in District 53, where incumbent state Rep. Willie Madrid of Chaparral lost a primary challenge to retired educator, and former school board member, Jon Hill.
Two months later, Hill has ended his campaign, citing health reasons, and opened the door for Democrats to select a new nominee who will face Republican candidate Elizabeth Winterrowd.
In an Aug. 2 news release, Hill announced his withdrawal and endorsement of Sarah Silva, a Las Cruces native and longtime community organizer in southern New Mexico. The announcement indicated that Hill, a cancer survivor, was struggling with health complications.
“As a cancer survivor, I know that these symptoms are not normal,” he stated in the news release. “I have come to the realization that I cannot effectively communicate with my supporters and our communities, and must announce my withdrawal from the race.”
Although the situation tempts comparison to President Joe Biden’s last-minute decision in July to drop his bid for a second term, weeks ahead of the Democratic National Convention, in this case Hill was already the official nominee. Additionally, Silva indicated that Hill was contemplating his withdrawal before Biden’s announcement, saying she was approached about a possible candidacy around July 19. (Biden withdrew on July 21 and endorsed his running mate, Vice President Kamala Harris.)
Democratic Party spokesperson Daniel Garcia confirmed that DPNM State Central Committee members who live in District 53 will meet on Aug. 22 to select a new nominee, and interested candidates have until that date to declare their interest in running. As of Tuesday afternoon, two candidates had done so: Silva, along with Willie Madrid, who lost the primary two months ago by a 16-percent margin.
Hill’s endorsement of Silva was enthusiastic, noting previous community work she had done in the district, which straddles Doña Ana and Otero counties. “Sarah shares my vision for long-term economic and social growth while building on our strengths to improve the quality of life for all New Mexicans.”
Silva was the founder of New Mexico Comunidades en Acción y de Fé, better known as NM Café, a faith-based advocacy organization, in 2009. She later moved on to a position with the Pacific Institute for Community Organization, now named Faith in Action.
She said she met Hill when he knocked on her door during his primary campaign. She praised his record as an advocate for extending public education and said she supported him over Madrid because of the incumbent’s vote against Senate Bill 3, which would have guaranteed paid family and medical leave for workers in the state. Madrid was among 11 Democrats who joined House Republicans in rejecting the bill on a close vote during the 2024 legislative session.
“I was born in Las Cruces; I was raised in Vado; and spent a majority of my career teaching communities how to hold their elected leaders accountable for the things that matter most to people, like their kids, their livelihoods, opportunities for them to be successful and safe,” Silva said in an interview. She said she would wait for the party committee to vote before engaging in campaign activity, but she said, “Issues like housing, affordable housing, are really important to me … immigration and making sure that our undocumented and mixed-status families have just the same opportunities as anyone else and aren't dehumanized or made illegitimate by other New Mexicans; and I think there are quality-of-life issues in Las Cruces that I'm looking forward to hearing about. There are parts of the district I don't know, and then there's infrastructure and quality-of-life issues in Chaparral. … I'm looking forward to reintroducing myself to that community and seeing what we can do around infrastructure, because it's the largest colonia in the state.”
The Bulletin has reached out to Hill for an interview, and did not hear back as of this article’s publication online.
